The Americana Series Monthly Challenge – August 2021: Mississippi
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1bhabeck
Each month, we will visit a different state in the United States of America for the Monthly Reading Challenge in the Mystery & Suspense Extra! Group. This month, we travel to the South – to MISSISSIPPI.
The Americana Series Monthly Challenge – August 2021: Mississippi
History
Mississippi is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Mississippi's western boundary is largely defined by the Mississippi River. Mississippi is the 32nd largest and 34th-most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Jackson is both the state's capital and largest city. Greater Jackson is the state's most populous metropolitan area, with an estimated population of 580,166 in 2018.
On December 10, 1817, Mississippi became the 20th state admitted to the Union. By 1860, Mississippi was the nation's top cotton-producing state and slaves accounted for 55% of the state population. Mississippi declared its secession from the Union on March 23, 1861, and was one of the seven original Confederate States, which constituted the largest slaveholding states in the nation. Following the Civil War, it was restored to the Union on February 23, 1870.
Until the Great Migration of the 1930s, African Americans were a majority of Mississippi's population. In 2010, 37.3% of Mississippi's population was African American, the highest percentage of any state.
Mississippi was the site of many prominent events during the civil rights movement, including the Ole Miss riot of 1962 by white students objecting to desegregation, the 1963 assassination of Medgar Evers, and the 1964 Freedom Summer murders of three activists working on voting rights.
Mississippi frequently ranks low among the U.S. in measures of health, education, and development, and high in measures of poverty.
Mississippi is almost entirely within the Gulf coastal plain, and generally consists of lowland plains and low hills. The northwest remainder of the state consists of the Mississippi Delta, a section of the Mississippi Alluvial Plain. Mississippi's highest point is Woodall Mountain at 807 feet (246 m) above sea level adjacent to the Cumberland Plateau; the lowest is the Gulf of Mexico. Mississippi has a humid subtropical climate classification.
Geography
Mississippi is bordered to the north by Tennessee, to the east by Alabama, to the south by Louisiana and a narrow coast on the Gulf of Mexico; and to the west, across the Mississippi River, by Louisiana and Arkansas.
Mississippi is entirely composed of lowlands, the highest point being Woodall Mountain, in the foothills of the Cumberland Mountains, 807 ft (246 m) above sea level. The lowest point is sea level at the Gulf Coast. The state's mean elevation is 300 ft (91 m) above sea level.
Most of Mississippi is part of the East Gulf Coastal Plain. The coastal plain is generally composed of low hills, such as the Pine Hills in the south and the North Central Hills. The Pontotoc Ridge and the Fall Line Hills in the northeast have somewhat higher elevations. Yellow-brown loess soil is found in the western parts of the state. The northeast is a region of fertile black earth uplands, a geology that extend into the Alabama Black Belt.
The northwest remainder of the state consists of the Mississippi Delta, a section of the Mississippi Alluvial Plain. The plain is narrow in the south and widens north of Vicksburg. The region has rich soil, partly made up of silt which had been regularly deposited by the flood waters of the Mississippi River.
Fun Facts
Jackson, the capital of Mississippi, is named after General Andrew Jackson in honor of his victory at the Battle of New Orleans in January of 1815.
Root beer was invented in Biloxi in 1898 by Edward Adolf Barq, Sr. of Biloxi Artesian Bottling Works. The Barq’s Root Beer company is now owned by Coca-Cola and is based in Atlanta.
The 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery in 1865, was not ratified by Mississippi until 2013. In 1995, lawmakers had finally voted to ratify the amendment, but the paperwork was never sent to the U.S. Archivist to be made official.
The term “teddy bear” originated in Mississippi when President Theodore Roosevelt refused to kill a trapped bear during a hunting trip near Onward, Mississippi in 1902. A Brooklyn candy shop owner saw a political cartoon depicting Roosevelt and the bear and was inspired to create a stuffed animal that he called “Teddy’s Bear.”
Legendary puppeteer Jim Henson was born in Greenville and spent his childhood in Leland, Mississippi. The town still honors Henson’s Mississippi roots with the Birthplace of Kermit the Frog Museum and the Rainbow Connection Bridge.
Mississippi is the farm-raised catfish capital of the United States, with over 100,000 acres of catfish ponds.
In the 1940s, the town of Pascagoula had a hard time figuring out the mystery of the bizarre “Phantom Barber.” The serial hair-snipper would break into homes to steal locks of hair and then slip away into the night. When it was all said and done, a man named William Dolan was caught and charged with attempted murder. But after serving six years of his 10-year sentence, Dolan passed a lie detector test and was set free.
The Nina Simone song "Mississippi Goddamn" was written and composed in an hour. The song was a response to violence against Blacks in the South, prompted by the murder of Medgar Evers in Jackson, Mississippi on June 12, 1963 and the bombing of a church in Birmingham. The song was named one of the top 20 protest songs of all time by The New Statesman in 2010.
Jackson is one of only four cities of the world sanctioned by The International Theater-Dance Committee to host the International Ballet Competition. The other three include Moscow, Russia, Varna, Bulgaria and Helsinki, Finland.
In 1834 Captain Isaac Ross, whose plantation was in Lorman, freed his slaves and arranged for them to be sent to Africa, where they founded the country of Liberia. Recently, representatives of Liberia visited Lorman and placed a stone at the Captain’s gravesite in honor of his kindness.
The world’s only cactus plantation is located in Edwards, Mississippi.
Over 1,000,000 Soft Toilet Seats are sold every year, thanks to a patent owned by Columbus native, David Harrison.
Friendship Cemetery in Columbus has been called Where Flowers Healed a Nation. It was April 25, 1866, and the Civil War had been over for a year when the ladies of Columbus decided to decorate both Confederate and Union soldiers’ graves with beautiful bouquets and garlands of flowers. As a direct result of this kind gesture, Americans celebrate what has come to be called Memorial Day each year, an annual observance of recognition of war dead.
Mississippi suffered the largest percentage of people who died in the Civil War of any Confederate State. 78,000 Mississippians entered the Confederate military. By the end of the war 59,000 were either dead or wounded.
Did you know that the world record for keeping an airplane airborne for the longest duration is held by Brothers Fred and Al Key, aka “the Flying Keys” of Meridian, Mississippi? The duo was able to accomplish the longest airborne flight and keep the airplane airborne for 27 days, 5 hours, and 34 minutes. After two failed attempts, they took off from Meridian Municipal Airport on June 4, 1935, and landed the plane safely on July 1, 1935. The airport was later renamed Key Field in their honor.
On average, Mississippi is affected by 27 tornadoes each year. Also, note that two of the five deadliest tornadoes in U.S. history have occurred in the state.
Notable Residents
Elvis Presley (“The King of Rock and Roll”), born on January 08, 1935, regarded as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 20th century was born in Tupelo, Mississippi. His energized interpretations of songs and sexually provocative performance style, combined with a singularly potent mix of influences across color lines during a transformative era in race relations, led him to both great success and initial controversy. Presley's first RCA Victor single, "Heartbreak Hotel", was released in January 1956 and became a number-one hit in the United States. Within a year, RCA would sell ten million Presley singles. With a series of successful network television appearances and chart-topping records, Presley became the leading figure of the newly popular sound of rock and roll.
Blues music was born in the Mississippi Delta, the northwest section of the state between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. Iconic blues musicians who hail from the state include B.B. King, Howlin’ Wolf, John Lee Hooker, Mississippi John Hurt, Lead Belly, and Little Freddie King, just to name a few.
If you have read the novel “The Optimist’s Daughter by Welty,” you should know that Author Eudora Welty was born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1909. She is one of the renowned writers of the 20th Century. For this novel, she won a Pulitzer Prize in 1973 and honored the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and later, she received the National Medal of Arts (it is the highest honor given to artists and arts patrons by the United States government.)
Other well-known authors that hail from Mississippi include: William Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, Shelby Foote and Rebecca Walker. Additionally, the following are Mississippi natives: Oprah Winfrey (TV host) Britney Spears (singer), Ike Turner (musician) and James Earl Jones (actor).
Natchez is home town of Black-Swan, the pseudonym of Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield. She was the first African American singer of Classic music. She was known as the best concert singer at that time. In October 1851, she gave an astounding performance in Buffalo, New York. Her appearance caused a great buzz since it was the first time in the history that a black singer appeared in a concert. A reporter from the Buffalo Commercial Advertiser dubbed her as the “Black Swan – that name stayed with her till her death.
In honor of MISSISSIPPI, read a Mystery/Suspense book (any sub-genre will do!) that satisfies one or more of the following:
• A Mystery/Suspense book with "River," "Music," "Blue," "Protest," "Poor" or "Slave" in the title OR has a picture of a river, a teddy bear, or a cactus on the cover;
• A Mystery/Suspense book that takes place in the American South OR involves a natural disaster (tornado/hurricane/etc) OR is has a character that is a musician or pilot OR has a protest/civil unrest; and
• A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's FIRST or LAST initial (no middle initials or names) can be found in MISSISSIPPI.
Happy Reading ❤
The Americana Series Monthly Challenge – August 2021: Mississippi
History
Mississippi is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Mississippi's western boundary is largely defined by the Mississippi River. Mississippi is the 32nd largest and 34th-most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Jackson is both the state's capital and largest city. Greater Jackson is the state's most populous metropolitan area, with an estimated population of 580,166 in 2018.
On December 10, 1817, Mississippi became the 20th state admitted to the Union. By 1860, Mississippi was the nation's top cotton-producing state and slaves accounted for 55% of the state population. Mississippi declared its secession from the Union on March 23, 1861, and was one of the seven original Confederate States, which constituted the largest slaveholding states in the nation. Following the Civil War, it was restored to the Union on February 23, 1870.
Until the Great Migration of the 1930s, African Americans were a majority of Mississippi's population. In 2010, 37.3% of Mississippi's population was African American, the highest percentage of any state.
Mississippi was the site of many prominent events during the civil rights movement, including the Ole Miss riot of 1962 by white students objecting to desegregation, the 1963 assassination of Medgar Evers, and the 1964 Freedom Summer murders of three activists working on voting rights.
Mississippi frequently ranks low among the U.S. in measures of health, education, and development, and high in measures of poverty.
Mississippi is almost entirely within the Gulf coastal plain, and generally consists of lowland plains and low hills. The northwest remainder of the state consists of the Mississippi Delta, a section of the Mississippi Alluvial Plain. Mississippi's highest point is Woodall Mountain at 807 feet (246 m) above sea level adjacent to the Cumberland Plateau; the lowest is the Gulf of Mexico. Mississippi has a humid subtropical climate classification.
Geography
Mississippi is bordered to the north by Tennessee, to the east by Alabama, to the south by Louisiana and a narrow coast on the Gulf of Mexico; and to the west, across the Mississippi River, by Louisiana and Arkansas.
Mississippi is entirely composed of lowlands, the highest point being Woodall Mountain, in the foothills of the Cumberland Mountains, 807 ft (246 m) above sea level. The lowest point is sea level at the Gulf Coast. The state's mean elevation is 300 ft (91 m) above sea level.
Most of Mississippi is part of the East Gulf Coastal Plain. The coastal plain is generally composed of low hills, such as the Pine Hills in the south and the North Central Hills. The Pontotoc Ridge and the Fall Line Hills in the northeast have somewhat higher elevations. Yellow-brown loess soil is found in the western parts of the state. The northeast is a region of fertile black earth uplands, a geology that extend into the Alabama Black Belt.
The northwest remainder of the state consists of the Mississippi Delta, a section of the Mississippi Alluvial Plain. The plain is narrow in the south and widens north of Vicksburg. The region has rich soil, partly made up of silt which had been regularly deposited by the flood waters of the Mississippi River.
Fun Facts
Jackson, the capital of Mississippi, is named after General Andrew Jackson in honor of his victory at the Battle of New Orleans in January of 1815.
Root beer was invented in Biloxi in 1898 by Edward Adolf Barq, Sr. of Biloxi Artesian Bottling Works. The Barq’s Root Beer company is now owned by Coca-Cola and is based in Atlanta.
The 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery in 1865, was not ratified by Mississippi until 2013. In 1995, lawmakers had finally voted to ratify the amendment, but the paperwork was never sent to the U.S. Archivist to be made official.
The term “teddy bear” originated in Mississippi when President Theodore Roosevelt refused to kill a trapped bear during a hunting trip near Onward, Mississippi in 1902. A Brooklyn candy shop owner saw a political cartoon depicting Roosevelt and the bear and was inspired to create a stuffed animal that he called “Teddy’s Bear.”
Legendary puppeteer Jim Henson was born in Greenville and spent his childhood in Leland, Mississippi. The town still honors Henson’s Mississippi roots with the Birthplace of Kermit the Frog Museum and the Rainbow Connection Bridge.
Mississippi is the farm-raised catfish capital of the United States, with over 100,000 acres of catfish ponds.
In the 1940s, the town of Pascagoula had a hard time figuring out the mystery of the bizarre “Phantom Barber.” The serial hair-snipper would break into homes to steal locks of hair and then slip away into the night. When it was all said and done, a man named William Dolan was caught and charged with attempted murder. But after serving six years of his 10-year sentence, Dolan passed a lie detector test and was set free.
The Nina Simone song "Mississippi Goddamn" was written and composed in an hour. The song was a response to violence against Blacks in the South, prompted by the murder of Medgar Evers in Jackson, Mississippi on June 12, 1963 and the bombing of a church in Birmingham. The song was named one of the top 20 protest songs of all time by The New Statesman in 2010.
Jackson is one of only four cities of the world sanctioned by The International Theater-Dance Committee to host the International Ballet Competition. The other three include Moscow, Russia, Varna, Bulgaria and Helsinki, Finland.
In 1834 Captain Isaac Ross, whose plantation was in Lorman, freed his slaves and arranged for them to be sent to Africa, where they founded the country of Liberia. Recently, representatives of Liberia visited Lorman and placed a stone at the Captain’s gravesite in honor of his kindness.
The world’s only cactus plantation is located in Edwards, Mississippi.
Over 1,000,000 Soft Toilet Seats are sold every year, thanks to a patent owned by Columbus native, David Harrison.
Friendship Cemetery in Columbus has been called Where Flowers Healed a Nation. It was April 25, 1866, and the Civil War had been over for a year when the ladies of Columbus decided to decorate both Confederate and Union soldiers’ graves with beautiful bouquets and garlands of flowers. As a direct result of this kind gesture, Americans celebrate what has come to be called Memorial Day each year, an annual observance of recognition of war dead.
Mississippi suffered the largest percentage of people who died in the Civil War of any Confederate State. 78,000 Mississippians entered the Confederate military. By the end of the war 59,000 were either dead or wounded.
Did you know that the world record for keeping an airplane airborne for the longest duration is held by Brothers Fred and Al Key, aka “the Flying Keys” of Meridian, Mississippi? The duo was able to accomplish the longest airborne flight and keep the airplane airborne for 27 days, 5 hours, and 34 minutes. After two failed attempts, they took off from Meridian Municipal Airport on June 4, 1935, and landed the plane safely on July 1, 1935. The airport was later renamed Key Field in their honor.
On average, Mississippi is affected by 27 tornadoes each year. Also, note that two of the five deadliest tornadoes in U.S. history have occurred in the state.
Notable Residents
Elvis Presley (“The King of Rock and Roll”), born on January 08, 1935, regarded as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 20th century was born in Tupelo, Mississippi. His energized interpretations of songs and sexually provocative performance style, combined with a singularly potent mix of influences across color lines during a transformative era in race relations, led him to both great success and initial controversy. Presley's first RCA Victor single, "Heartbreak Hotel", was released in January 1956 and became a number-one hit in the United States. Within a year, RCA would sell ten million Presley singles. With a series of successful network television appearances and chart-topping records, Presley became the leading figure of the newly popular sound of rock and roll.
Blues music was born in the Mississippi Delta, the northwest section of the state between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. Iconic blues musicians who hail from the state include B.B. King, Howlin’ Wolf, John Lee Hooker, Mississippi John Hurt, Lead Belly, and Little Freddie King, just to name a few.
If you have read the novel “The Optimist’s Daughter by Welty,” you should know that Author Eudora Welty was born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1909. She is one of the renowned writers of the 20th Century. For this novel, she won a Pulitzer Prize in 1973 and honored the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and later, she received the National Medal of Arts (it is the highest honor given to artists and arts patrons by the United States government.)
Other well-known authors that hail from Mississippi include: William Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, Shelby Foote and Rebecca Walker. Additionally, the following are Mississippi natives: Oprah Winfrey (TV host) Britney Spears (singer), Ike Turner (musician) and James Earl Jones (actor).
Natchez is home town of Black-Swan, the pseudonym of Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield. She was the first African American singer of Classic music. She was known as the best concert singer at that time. In October 1851, she gave an astounding performance in Buffalo, New York. Her appearance caused a great buzz since it was the first time in the history that a black singer appeared in a concert. A reporter from the Buffalo Commercial Advertiser dubbed her as the “Black Swan – that name stayed with her till her death.
In honor of MISSISSIPPI, read a Mystery/Suspense book (any sub-genre will do!) that satisfies one or more of the following:
• A Mystery/Suspense book with "River," "Music," "Blue," "Protest," "Poor" or "Slave" in the title OR has a picture of a river, a teddy bear, or a cactus on the cover;
• A Mystery/Suspense book that takes place in the American South OR involves a natural disaster (tornado/hurricane/etc) OR is has a character that is a musician or pilot OR has a protest/civil unrest; and
• A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's FIRST or LAST initial (no middle initials or names) can be found in MISSISSIPPI.
Happy Reading ❤
2bhabeck
Brenda's Americana Challenge - August 2021: Mississippi
3 of 3 Complete
In honor of MISSISSIPPI, read a Mystery/Suspense book (any sub-genre will do!) that satisfies one or more of the following:
• A Mystery/Suspense book with "River," "Music," "Blue," "Protest," "Poor" or "Slave" in the title OR has a picture of a river, a teddy bear, or a cactus on the cover;
Blue Monday by Nicci French; 8/16/21; 4 stars
• A Mystery/Suspense book that takes place in the American South OR involves a natural disaster (tornado/hurricane/etc) OR is has a character that is a musician or pilot OR has a protest/civil unrest; and
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens; takes place in the American South; finished 8/1/21; 4 stars
• A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's FIRST or LAST initial (no middle initials or names) can be found in MISSISSIPPI.
Survive the Night by Riley Sager; finished 8/11/21; 3.5 stars
3 of 3 Complete
In honor of MISSISSIPPI, read a Mystery/Suspense book (any sub-genre will do!) that satisfies one or more of the following:
• A Mystery/Suspense book with "River," "Music," "Blue," "Protest," "Poor" or "Slave" in the title OR has a picture of a river, a teddy bear, or a cactus on the cover;
Blue Monday by Nicci French; 8/16/21; 4 stars
• A Mystery/Suspense book that takes place in the American South OR involves a natural disaster (tornado/hurricane/etc) OR is has a character that is a musician or pilot OR has a protest/civil unrest; and
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens; takes place in the American South; finished 8/1/21; 4 stars
• A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's FIRST or LAST initial (no middle initials or names) can be found in MISSISSIPPI.
Survive the Night by Riley Sager; finished 8/11/21; 3.5 stars
3Carol420
Carol Hangs out with "The King" (Just don't step on my Blue Suede Shoes!)
📌 - ★ 3/3
📌1. A Mystery/Suspense book with "River," "Music," "Blue," "Protest," "Poor" or "Slave" in the title OR has a picture of a river, a teddy bear, or a cactus on the cover;
Fools River - Timothy Hallinan - 4★
📌2. A Mystery/Suspense book that takes place in the American South OR involves a natural disaster (tornado/hurricane/etc) OR is has a character that is a musician or pilot OR has a protest/civil unrest; and
The Rising (Badlands) - Morgan Brice (South Carolina) - 5★
📌3. A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's FIRST or LAST initial (no middle initials or names) can be found in MISSISSIPPI.
Dark Blood - Stuart McBride -4.5★ (S & M) Do I get extra points???
4Olivermagnus
I was born in Biloxi, Mississippi and my grandson is currently stationed there with the Air Force.
3 of 3 Complete
In honor of MISSISSIPPI, read a Mystery/Suspense book (any sub-genre will do!) that satisfies one or more of the following:
🐝 A Mystery/Suspense book with "River," "Music," "Blue," "Protest," "Poor" or "Slave" in the title OR has a picture of a river, a teddy bear, or a cactus on the cover
Fatal Frost - Karen MacInerney - 3.5 Stars - 8/30/31
🐝 A Mystery/Suspense book that takes place in the American South OR involves a natural disaster (tornado/hurricane/etc) OR is has a character that is a musician or pilot OR has a protest/civil unrest; and
Poppy Done to Death - Charlaine Harris - 3.5 Stars - 8/5/21 - set in Georgia
🐝 A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's FIRST or LAST initial (no middle initials or names) can be found in MISSISSIPPI.
Flower Master - Sujata Massey - 4 Stars - 8/8/21 - SM
3 of 3 Complete
In honor of MISSISSIPPI, read a Mystery/Suspense book (any sub-genre will do!) that satisfies one or more of the following:
🐝 A Mystery/Suspense book with "River," "Music," "Blue," "Protest," "Poor" or "Slave" in the title OR has a picture of a river, a teddy bear, or a cactus on the cover
Fatal Frost - Karen MacInerney - 3.5 Stars - 8/30/31
🐝 A Mystery/Suspense book that takes place in the American South OR involves a natural disaster (tornado/hurricane/etc) OR is has a character that is a musician or pilot OR has a protest/civil unrest; and
Poppy Done to Death - Charlaine Harris - 3.5 Stars - 8/5/21 - set in Georgia
🐝 A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's FIRST or LAST initial (no middle initials or names) can be found in MISSISSIPPI.
Flower Master - Sujata Massey - 4 Stars - 8/8/21 - SM
5bhabeck
>3 Carol420: LOL…having an M and an S to work with gave you lots of options…let’s see how you do when we got to OHIO or IOWA…LOL
6Carol420
>5 bhabeck: I accept that challenge:)
7gaylebutz
I'm going to read Sycamore Row by John Grisham.
It takes place in Mississippi.
It takes place in Mississippi.
8Sergeirocks
A Very Private Murder - Stuart Pawson 4.5★s (Author's initial in MISSISSIPPI - like Carol, I got both initials, 😉)
The Mystery of the Blue Train - Agatha Christie 4★s ('Blue' in the title)
Trouble in Mudbug - Jana DeLeon 3★s (Set in Louisiana)
The Mystery of the Blue Train - Agatha Christie 4★s ('Blue' in the title)
Trouble in Mudbug - Jana DeLeon 3★s (Set in Louisiana)
9Carol420
>8 Sergeirocks: She won't give you extra points. I already tried:)
12bhabeck
>4 Olivermagnus: you always have interesting books! I’m putting Flower Master on Mt. TBR
13bhabeck
>11 Carol420: well done!
14bhabeck
>9 Carol420: LOL nope.
15bhabeck
>2 bhabeck: done
17gaylebutz
Done - Sycamore Row by John Grisham - 4 *
It takes place in Mississippi.
It takes place in Mississippi.
18bhabeck
>17 gaylebutz: nice! congrats!
20bhabeck
>8 Sergeirocks: Well done Sergei!
22Olivermagnus
It was last minute, but I got them all this month. Now off to Louisiana.
24Olivermagnus
I love love love this picture.
25bhabeck
>22 Olivermagnus: last minute still counts! congrats!
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